Skating On Thin Ice.

A burst of seasonal snow.

Only last week I was regaling all and sundry about the weather having peaked in its coldness and that we've had a lucky escape from any sort of depth of winter. Well, how wrong was I. Last night winter decided to bare its teeth.

Snow fell steadily but not all night long yet coupled with below freezing temperatures, the deed was done. A proper winter affair to warm the cockles of any orthopedic surgeon's heart. Even the front steps were so iced over that I could see my reflection in it. Dangerous enough for Bob to ask me to buy salt on my way home from work.

Tigger's lair had an extra layer of snow atop and I don't even want to think about how she shivered through the night. We did buy her an extra blanket on Wednesday but with each of those warm extras the space inside gets less and less thus causing her to almost touch the roof with her head. Bob and I need to redesign it sometime soon.

Driving off to work this morning proved very hazardous. The road even though it was close to ten in the morning was patched over with solid ice. Oh there were small stones all over but these proved rather useless when covered in ice themselves. I could feel the car slipping sideways and hastily dropped down to first gear. Driving in real winter conditions is not for the faint of heart. Each braking distance needs to be lengthened and stops approached more slowly.

Even though I sound as if I were complaining, I do like this new face of winter. The snow is still pristine, the air as crisp as can be and the temperatures low enough to warrant an afternoon spent doing absolutely nothing else but read or sleep. We all need those sort of days that allow us temporarily step off our own well designed hamster wheel of life.

Biggi